


kita shinsuke's gods

by kaumari



Series: time is the change from stardust to bones [1]
Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: ?? i guess, Fluff, Gods, M/M, Religious Imagery & Symbolism
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-21
Updated: 2020-08-21
Packaged: 2021-03-06 18:40:53
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 606
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26033599
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kaumari/pseuds/kaumari
Summary: in which shinsuke does not worship, but gods find him anyway.
Relationships: Kita Shinsuke/Miya Atsumu
Series: time is the change from stardust to bones [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1889728
Comments: 6
Kudos: 46





	kita shinsuke's gods

In the airy morning, the rice laden with dew not yet burned away by the rising sun, Shinsuke sees a god in the distant mountains. He has no use for gods and their whims, but every evening he offers that distant god a prayer. It is only right, after all, to pay respects where they are due. In return, devastating weather that would harm his crops are kept at bay, shielded from the worst of the storms by the imposing mountains ahead. On those days, Shinsuke burns an extra offering to acknowledge the benevolence shown to him. He has no use for gods, but he will not scorn them.

In the dim forest, shadows creeping at the edges of the road, Shinsuke sees a god in the space between the trees. They whisper to him, made of meaningless platitudes in a language long last time, but they beckon him all the same. Shinsuke continues, steadily coming down the mountain until the trees no longer group together and the shadows lose their power. Shinsuke always offers a prayer to this god as well, and on days when he is spared the wrath of a landslide, he burns an extra offering. He is thankful, but he is not indebted.

At six in the morning, without fail, Shinsuke will step outside and be greeted by a god. Trickster eyes and mocking caws follow him as he runs through the motions, not a hint of discomfort or annoyance to be seen. He thinks of fallen crows and flight, and knows there are worse gods to have. He does not need this god, who watches him so intently, but he offers them a prayer all the same. On days when his harvest would be at the mercy of an insect swarm, he finds a sea of crows in the field. He burns an extra offering to the watching god.

Not all gods are immortal, Shinsuke knows this well. A god exists only in the realm of the power given to them. They are worshiped, but worshippers are mortal. Shinsuke does not worship, but he prays. Those are two different things, regardless of what Atsumu says.

Shinsuke does not worship, and Atsumu is no exception. Regardless of how the sunrise draws a portrait of golden highlights on his face, of how his smile feels at once like a cold shock and a warm sun, of how the crook of his arms fit him so well, Shinsuke does not worship. On the court, Atsumu commands attention, not as a king but as a god (what is a king to a god?). Ethereal, divine, the self assurance he is the best of the best. It is partially hubris, mostly skill, and only a hint of egoism.

In other ways, Atsumu is painfully mortal. He has a pitiful track record of sickness. He hates waking up before 8 and regrets his career sorely for this. He loves so faithfully, and isn't that what sets him apart most? Gods are not (cannot be) capable of love the way mortals are. Shinsuke knows this the way he knows Atsumu’s touch and kisses and small displays of kindness only he is privy to. Shinsuke prays to his gods, and Atsumu is no exception. He prays to him in a manner so holy mortal, intimate, loving, that there is no mistaking his intentions. But there are no extra offerings for this God, whose eyes track him in the late mornings and his touch burns the only offering he is given.

Shinsuke has no need for the whims of gods, and yet he prays. After all, they are always watching.

**Author's Note:**

> find me on [twitter](https://twitter.com/timelessidyll) \+ [curiouscat](https://curiouscat.me/timelessidyll)!


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